The quality and reputation of your work as a dentist depends, in part, on the quality of services provided by your dental lab. Dental lab work that is substandard will invariably reflect negatively on your practice. Because of this potential impact on your cases, reputation, and long-term business, it is imperative you identify and choose a dental lab that will produce consistently excellent work. Such labs will help you strengthen the patient relationship and their overall satisfaction, which in turn, will aide in growing your practice.
Qualities of a Superior Dental Lab
So, what are the primary characteristics of good dental labs, and how do you identify a quality dental lab with which to engage in a professional relationship? What areas should you look into most closely? While some of these answers may vary based on personal preference there are some key elements that should not be overlooked when vetting out a dental lab.
Commitment to Client Satisfaction
A high-quality dental lab will do its best to fully understand what you want accomplished with every case. It looks for ways to help you and your patients. It seeks to provide excellent customer service at all times. It aims for a quick turnaround time, especially if your patient’s need for a product is immediate. If you have a challenging case, it demonstrates its firm commitment to your success by giving well thought out suggestions.
Effective Communication and Accessibility
Communication is vital to a successful relationship between a dentist and a dental lab.
You need a dental lab you can easily get in touch with every time you need their services. Their technicians and support staff should be available through any form of communication you prefer – be it text, phone, e-mail, or even video.
Use of High-Grade Materials
Dental lab products of superior quality are fabricated from materials of the finest quality and highest standards. A quality dental lab with a great reputation uses only high-grade ADA-approved materials. It will not risk the quality of its work by using cheap, or low-quality substitutes.
Complete In-house Resources
Look for a dental lab with all the resources to fabricate their dental restorations in-house.
Some dental laboratories choose to cut cost by outsourcing their work out of the country. They may be able to cut costs this way. However, they undermine their ability to oversee the quality of materials and processes employed to fabricate the products.
Make sure to partner with a dental lab that can create the finest products for oral health and cosmetic dentistry within their own facilities where quality control can be maintained. This means that the lab retains absolute control over every detail to ensure that the products are manufactured based on the most stringent standards of quality.
Practice Support
A dental laboratory that has been established for a number of years in the industry should have experience and knowledge that you can count on if needed. The members of their staff have worked with a good number of dentists on multiple cases. They can help you identify the best treatment or product options for a specific type of case, as well as help prevent costly mistakes. They can provide excellent service to help you strengthen your dentist-patient relationship and your overall practice. The lab’s support can also help save precious time and effort, and generate more income.
State-of-the-art Technology
Technology grows by leaps and bounds. A quality dental lab must be able to stay up to date in the technology it uses to turn out the highest quality lab work.
Does the dental lab you are considering have efficient milling units, 3D digital printing, digital scanning and other similar advancements in dental lab technology? Are they willing and even eager to find new ways to adopt and adapt technology as it becomes relevant and reliable?
Excellent Reputation
Look for a dental lab with a solid reputation in the industry. How long has the dental lab been in the business? Labs that have been in the industry for an extended period of time have apparently weathered many storms, worked with perhaps hundreds of dentists, and helped treat innumerable patients. That longevity should not be underestimated. Are the lab technicians knowledgeable in their work, highly trained, and eager to keep up with recent developments in the industry? Do they have the required certifications for dental technicians? Do they have a firm commitment to excellence as demonstrated by their work?
At Treasure Dental Lab, we realize that that are is a large number of quality dental labs within the United States to choose from. And while we would love for all dentists to begin working with us, that’s just not reality. We certainly would welcome any further questions you may have regarding our practice, standards, or expertise, but most importantly we simply want help maintain the highest standards for our industry as a whole.
So, if you’re out there looking for a reliable lab, we hope that you find one that meets the criteria above. If that seems troublesome, feel free to contact us at any time. We’ve been around for nearly 50 years and we aren’t going away anytime soon.
